The two victims who died in an accident involving a blazing semi-truck on a busy interstate are remembered as “excellent parents” by their family members.

Troy police authorities recently released the couples’ identity — two Durand residents, 34-year-old Lonnie Ray Moore and 25-year-old Kari Michelle Hinspeter. They died July 1 after their Pontiac was trapped under a semi-truck that caught fire along I-75 in Troy.

They had a 4-month-old son together who now lives with Kari’s parents, Michael and Karen Hinspeter.

“The baby was her life,” said Karen. “One of my favorite memories was that I was there for the birth of the baby. That was the highlight of her life, I think.”

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Karen described her daughter Kari as the kind of person who cared about others more than herself.

“On Christmas, she was always the type of kid who was so excited to watch everybody else open their gifts. She always saved her gifts for last,” said Karen. “(Kari) was very spirited from the time she was little. She was always on her toes, always on the go and keeping us on the go.”

Lonnie’s mother, Cheryl, said her son, who grew up in Flint and was employed as a truck driver, had four children, one who is diagnosed with autism.

“They’ll have no father. And one child will have no mother or father. They’re parentless,” said Cheryl. “My son was not a perfect man, but he was one heck of a good father. And now my grandchildren have been denied that. ... He’s not alive to walk his daughter down the aisle; he’s not alive to see his first grandchild.”

Cheryl said she will miss everything about her son Lonnie.

“I live in a retirement community, and days he couldn’t come and check on me, he would at least call and ask, ‘Mom, are you alright? Mom, do you need to go to the store? Mom, do you need a ride any place?’” said Cheryl. “He wasn’t only my son; he was my friend.”

When the accident happened, Karen said she was on vacation with her husband. That night, Kari and Lonnie went to the casino while Kari’s sister baby-sat for them.

“Our other daughter contacted us and said they never showed up to pick the baby up, which was very unlike her,” said Karen. “We knew something wasn’t right. We just didn’t know what it was. When we found out, I think we prepared ourselves all day.”

The morning of the crash, firefighters didn’t see the car — which was almost completely destroyed — until they had put most of the flames out from the fire caused by the semi, officials said.

When the pair were found, said Troy Police Sgt. Andy Breidenich, they were terribly burned and unidentifiable. Oakland County Medical Examiner’s Office investigators reported the delay was caused due to a dental records check on the motorists.

Lonnie, the driver, died from multiple injuries, while Kari died from thermal injuries in the fire, along with blunt force head trauma, investigators said.

Oakland County Chief Medical Examiner Ljubisa Dragovic said that dental record checks are standard operating procedure if all other options of identifying a victim — having family members identify them, obtaining a DNA check from blood samples and getting fingerprints — are unavailable.

“X-ray documentation is involved,” Dragovic said.

Doctors have to “(evaluate) the remains and the dental structure of whatever is preserved.”

The driver of the Art Van semi, who suffered only minor injuries in the early July accident, told officials he remembered that his “truck jack-knifed, then caught on fire. He was able to get out of it, but later had no idea he hit a car,” Breidenich added.

Lonnie’s mother, Cheryl, said, “I’ve already filed suit to get money for my four grandchildren,” but did not elaborate.

Another witness said they saw the car just before the incident, driving slowly with its hazard lights on — but no headlights — along the highway.

Troy Capt. Bob Redmond said Thursday that the bizarre fatal crash is still under investigation and will take a considerable amount of time to complete.